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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. capital — money
  4. march — music
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. last — finally
  7. face — to point toward
  8. march — the month
  9. plane — a tool
  10. band — a ring
  11. last — final
  12. band — a music group
  13. mate — to breed
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. fork — in a road
  16. march — the month
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. last — to go on
  20. mate — a partner
  21. face — part of the head
  22. mate — a friend
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. face — to confront

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com